Everton have reportedly given up hope of signing Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud.
According to the Liverpool Echo, Everton have abandoned their pursuit of Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud, with the Frenchman seemingly keen to fight for his place at the Emirates Stadium.
The Toffees took their summer spending well beyond £100million this summer by signing Gylfi Sigurdsson from Swansea City on Wednesday evening, adding him to other summer signings Jordan Pickford, Michael Keane, Davy Klaassen, Sandro Ramirez and Wayne Rooney.
Whilst Ronald Koeman has boosted his squad with a number of signings, he did lose top goalscorer Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United in a big-money deal, and Everton do still lack a true centre forward.
Everton had been hoping to bring in Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud, but the Liverpool Echo report that the Toffees have now given up hope of signing the French international, who looks set to fight for his place with the Gunners.
A 2012 signing from Montpellier, Giroud has had his critics during his time with Arsenal, but has hit 99 goals in 229 games for the Gunners, and was the hero last week with the winning goal in the 4-3 home win over Leicester City on the opening day of the Premier League season.
The 30-year-old has slipped down the pecking order following the arrival of international team-mate Alexander Lacazette, but he seems willing to stay and battle for his place under Arsene Wenger, rather than make a move to Everton.
That leaves the Toffees looking for alternative options in attack, and it’s noted that Everton could move for Fiorentina’s Nikola Kalinic, or even launch a surprise move for Crystal Palace striker Christian Benteke.
The Belgian powerhouse endured a dismal year with Liverpool following a 2015 move from Aston Villa, and whilst the Belgian international hit 15 Premier League goals last season, Everton fans may not be too keen on signing a player who flopped with Liverpool.
Palace would also want a huge fee for the 26-year-old striker, but it seems that Everton are focusing on signing a target man to lead their attack, giving new signing Sigurdsson a figure to aim for in the final third.
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